Barry Divola
Writer
Barry Divola is a journalist and author who specialises in music, popular culture, the arts, podcasts and travel.Connect via email.
Once-forgotten ghost town is now one of the coolest neighbourhoods in Japan
Just 20 years ago, this part of Osaka was barely known, even to the locals. One man sparked a complete transformation.
- Barry Divola
The underrated Tokyo neighbourhoods you need to visit
From vintage clothing and lantern-lit alleyways to Japanese pubs and “cat town”, discovering new places to explore is never an issue.
- Barry Divola
The rapidly evolving hipster neighbourhood that’s New York on steroids
Williamsburg once felt like an entirely different city to Manhattan. Now it is the epicentre of everything hot in New York.
- Barry Divola
They say four days in Tokyo is plenty. I firmly disagree
You could hop from city to city, kids in tow, frantically ticking off Japan’s main sights. But here’s why three weeks of staying put in one city is perfect.
- Barry Divola
New York’s most fascinating neighbourhood is across a familiar bridge
It’s only 20 minutes from Manhattan but feels like a different city. And it’s home to the inspiration for Sydney Harbour Bridge.
- Barry Divola
Tokyo’s shopping mecca has everything – including a flagship Uniqlo
From clothes to records to books to gifts, the shopping experience in Tokyo’s buzzing Shinjuku is next-level and only limited by your credit-card balance.
- Barry Divola
- ★★★★½
- Hotel reviews
If you want a good-value, perfect base for exploring Manhattan, this is it
“This is Where the Magic Happens” reads the pink neon sign near The Moxy Lower East Side Hotel reception desk. Ain’t that the truth.
- Barry Divola
- ★★★★
- Hotel reviews
Hilton’s giant new New York hotel is perfect for first-time visitors
The first property from Hilton’s new brand Tempo is a 661-room behemoth that towers over Times Square.
- Barry Divola
‘I was almost brought to tears’: Navigating Tokyo’s hugely popular tourist attraction
Part museum, part art installation and part amusement park – as one of Tokyo’s most popular attractions, it pays to know before you go to teamLab Planets.
- Barry Divola
This Tokyo neighbourhood is one of the coolest places you’ll ever visit
With its vintage clothing stores, record shops, hip bars and flea markets, could Shimokitazawa be the coolest neighbourhood in Tokyo?
- Barry Divola